Heavyweights Travis Browne and Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva will headline the UFC’s return to Minnesota in October.

USA TODAY Sports on Thursday learned from UFC officials that Browne will fight Silva on Oct. 5 in the main event of UFC on FX 5, which will take place at the Target Center in Minneapolis.

Browne (13-0-1 MMA, 4-0-1 UFC) on Wednesday was forced off the FOX-broadcast main card of next week’s “UFC on FOX 4: Shogun vs. Vera” event. But promotion officials have lessened the blow by rewarding the 6-foot-7 heavyweight his first headlining role.

The 30-year-old Browne had been expected to face Ben Rothwell (32-8 MMA, 2-2 UFC) at UFC on FOX 4, which takes place Aug. 4 at Los Angeles’ Staples Center. However, an ankle injury forced Rothwell to withdraw from the event, and UFC officials were unable to secure Browne a suitable replacement in time.

Silva (16-4 MMA, 0-1 UFC), a Strikeforce heavyweight grand prix semifinalist earlier this year, will fight for the second time under the UFC banner. The 6-foot-4 Brazilian in May fell short in a No. 1 contenders fight against Cain Velasquez and now looks to rebound from that first-round TKO loss.

In addition to the night’s headlining bout, “UFC on FX 5: Browne vs. Bigfoot” is expected to feature three other contests on the FX-broadcast main card. Preliminary-card bouts will air on FUEL TV.

The UFC has not visited Minneapolis since UFC 87, a pay-per-view event in August 2008. UFC on FX 5 originally was planned for Sept. 7 in Indianapolis. But venue complications earlier this month precipitated a change in both the date and location.

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